


Is This Love Or Envy?

by ImogenSmiley



Category: Love Live! School Idol Project
Genre: 52 Week Oneshot Challenge, Acceptance, Attraction, Crushes, F/F, Firsts, Getting Together, Lesbian Character, Love, Observations, Oneshot, Riko Sakurauchi is a LESBIAN
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-11
Updated: 2020-11-11
Packaged: 2021-03-10 00:15:47
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27545203
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImogenSmiley/pseuds/ImogenSmiley
Summary: Riko never expected to find herself on the stage, or at least, not without a piano to shield her trembling fingers and buckling knees. She certainly never expected herself to walk in step with two, stunning, confident girls that were at home with their weirdness.
Relationships: Sakurauchi Riko/Takami Chika
Kudos: 6





	Is This Love Or Envy?

Riko never expected to find herself on the stage, or at least, not without a piano to shield her trembling fingers and buckling knees. She certainly never expected herself to walk in step with two, stunning, confident girls that were at home with their weirdness.

Becoming a School Idol had never been in her life-plan. But then again, nor was her breakdown. To think, at just fifteen years old she had such a hysterical breakdown over an art-block that she spiralled into a depression was chilling. The piano keys had always been an extension of her body, the songs of her heartbeat would flow from restless chords, but when the music stopped, being alone without the comfort of her instrument was scary.

Everything became too much. Especially in such a large city. Tokyo was a magnifying glass, amplifying every last one of her insecurities and phobias.

Uranahoshi Girls’ School was different. Because the town contained the storm of a girl; Chika Takami.

Oh how Riko adored Chika. She had never imagined she could find someone like her.

The girls at her old school seemed to exist with sour faces tattooed on their lips. She hadn’t seen any inter-year friendships at Otonokizaka. Perhaps she hadn’t been looking hard enough, but it seemed that most girls that walked through those gates wanted to be the next Honoka Kosaka, or the next Nico Yazawa, or even the next Rin Hoshizora. They all wanted to be so-and-so from Muse, and Riko had grown past it.

Sure going to a famous school was cool, but she was grateful to move away when the opportunity arose. In the form of Chika.

Chika was pretty; the kind of girl that likely got overlooked despite being so pretty, she had such a kind face, and eyes that sparkled like fairground lights. She ran like a child racing to be the first on the swing set and that youthful enthusiasm was contagious. Despite being reserved by nature; she couldn’t help but feel comfortable in the presence of her neighbour. Chika was easy to talk to.

She felt like some sort of kindred spirit; someone that she was meant to run into. Even if their first meeting had summarised their entire relationship. Turbulent, and Chika-led.

Chika was a natural disaster, observed from a distance, like when you watch heavy waves from the comfort of your bedroom window. Enthusiasm rattled her to the core, and she was surrounded by people that enabled that childlike desperation to do whatever she wanted to.

She didn’t understand, initially, how those other girls, You Watanabe and Kanan Matsuura could have known her for as long as they had, loved her for as long as they had, and not tried to drown her. Not in a malicious way, just, morbid curiosity.

That was, before Riko saw the way You looked at Chika. She was a storm chaser, all in and eager to experience the thrill of adventure. Of the chase, of the persuit. She knew she wanted to feel the gentle touch of unrestrained chaos, but was bound to her talents. She wanted a taste of the life Chika seemed to lead. And, from where Riko sat, it seemed that You wanted it by the clementine haired girl’s side.

But You was overlooked. At least, as a romantic partner. Chika had explained to Riko early into their friendship that You was a ride-or-die friend, and they had been together since early childhood. Schooling in such a small town meant most kids knew each other, regardless of their year of study. After all, classes were small.

Riko admired You, too. She was a flexible kind of girl; eager to please and to achieve. She was a swimmer, an athlete, and otherwise an average student before Chika’s convoluted School Idol plan came to be. You only had two years left of High School to attract the attention of a college out of the area to have their attention piqued by her athletic abilities. She had time, but she knew it was running out. But Chika was more important, so she clung to a kite-string as it got swept into a hurricane.

Riko wondered what it was like to be Chika; to know no matter what she did, what mistakes she could possibly make, as long as she was breathing, she had a job waiting for her in her family’s onsen. It must have been nice to have a family business to rely upon. Kanan Matsuura apparently had one too. The diving business.

Kanan was an athlete too, but she didn’t take the future as seriously as a third year high school student back in Tokyo would. Most girls Kanan’s age were riddled with anxiety by the start of their final year. To see a girl like her slacking off so much, taking so much time out of school to help with her family business was unheard of back at her old school. She watched a completely different side of Chika come out when Kanan was mentioned in the halls, it always made her blush behind her hands.

She was a forest fire when people insulted her friends. Whenever the rumour mill regurgitated spiel about her friend, Chika was quick to shut it down, threaten violence, regardless of consequence. Not that she ever got caught. After all, You had her back.

Chika could have had Hanamaki-san by the collar, demanding to know where she heard Kanan’s grandfather was dying, and all it would take was a cough from You and she would have flipped like a switch back to sunshine and rainbows.

Dia Kurosawa was the same, but the student council president was much scarier. A beauty beyond words, with a countenance that seemed to have been engrained into her from childhood, she walked like a princess would in old-timey feudal tales. Maybe she was one, reincarnated. After all, her younger sister was a cluts.

Dia, however, was the first girl that Riko allowed herself to acknowledge as absolutely stunning out loud. It was less embarrassing than gushing about Chika in front of her. And, there was comfort in the collective sigh that came from the other two girls as they swooned over the poise of the beautiful dark haired student council president.

She couldn’t deny, when they were formally introduced, Riko thought her heart might have exploded in her chest. This town was full of personality, while Tokyo was full of wannabes. She didn’t understand why the rhythm of such a small town made her want to compose again, but there she was, pounding freshly painted nails against ivory keys, writing songs of anguish about how hard this place was to understand, never to see the light of a concert.

Of course, any feelings she had for the stunningly beautiful Dia Kurosawa fizzled out after the second, or third confrontation with the student council over school idols. It was hard to crush on a girl, no matter how beautiful she was, if they didn’t share your view.

Which was why, Chika was the sunlight that illuminated Riko from her depression. Oh, how Riko thrived in the company of the clementine haired girl, her shy nature was cast to the wind as long as they were hand in hand. There was nothing she couldn’t achieve with Chika at her side. She was David and Chika was the slingshot. The world around them was Goliath but they would make it. 

For months, the burgundy haired pianist played by Chika’s side, entwining their fingers, shyly instigating a cautious invitation. Too bad, Chika was bad at understanding implied messages. She was never good at that, even at school.

You, however, was.

You Watanabe was more perceptive than many of her friends gave her credit for. Especially when it came to two of her dearest friends; Kanan and Chika. Those girls were the plainest to read, and it mattered not what they said to the world, it was clear what they meant. You knew Kanan was never over Mari, and, more painfully, that Chika was developing feelings for the pianist that lived next door. And she would have to get over it.

Telling You that she had a crush on Chika, too, was one of the hardest things that Riko ever attempted. Which is why she was grateful that her friend had told her that she already knew and there was little need to talk about it more. Not then, at least. Of course they would remain amicable. They would have to; they were members of the same idol group, which was already bubbling with domestics with Kanan and Mari’s own turbulent relationship of teasing. They couldn’t rock the boat, and so, You, finally let go of the kite-string from which she clung, desperate for it to turn red, and let Riko chase the storm herself.

She and Chika got together two weeks later. And, if Riko made Chika that happy, then she would be happy. Even if, at night, she dreamed of a world where things had been different.


End file.
